All the Worlds a Stage

I always wanted to be a theatre actor or to be more accurate I wanted to be the character a theatre actor might play – there is a distinction I think. Having dabbled with a bit of acting both as a young man in London and latterly as a company member of the wonderful Brighton Little Theatre I have had the privilege of working with some incredible talents and they have confirmed to me that the one attribute they have above allothers is that of discipline.

They know through their training and their experience how to transform into their characters with the use of movement ( or stillness) the complete awareness of how they are inhabiting their environment, how they interact with others on stage, they make it look effortless. It is a craft that requires not just raw talent or the ability to speak well but the total focus of the artist, a setting aside of ego that means that the work is all. Its utterly thrilling to experience.

Now me? I’m a showboat…I love to perform; I love to chat ( as established in pretty much everything I write)….when I feel passionate about something, my energy will seem to come from somewhere primal, from a place of emotion, not one of craft. That’s why I will only ever be a second rate actor but I flatter myself I’m a first-rate pitch artist (that’s pitch….artist!)

Let me share a few of my thoughts on why…

The Power of Belief in Pitching

Pitching , as distinct from public speaking, is all about belief, about knowing that what you are pitching is absolutely the right thing for your client. You believe in everything about it, from the interpretation of the brief, the research findings on the client and their target audience, the seed of the ideas that you and the team have lovingly tended to the point where you now present them as what must surely be a fait au complit for your clients sign off. This belief feeds everything else.

Passion: The Driving Force of a Successful Pitch

How can you sell this pitch without passion? Well, you might be able to but I simply cant. I’ve seen plenty of great ideas that stand up on their own but fall by the wayside in the cut and thrust, the bullfight that is the pitch arena. How can you have passion without belief? Without belief there isn’t truth and without truth you are selling a lie. If you want to do that then you may win the pitch, but you’ll get found out down the line when you simply can’t keep that lie going…something will go wrong.

The Importance of Practice in Pitching

I bring in practice third because it is simply not as exciting as Belief and Passion, but it is vital….I would never think of going to a pitch unprepared and I would not be very pleased if another member of the team wasn’t either ( see my thoughts on preparing pitches and running pitch teams). You should be able to pitch from beginning to end without glancing at the document up on that screen whether it’s a blur of text (don’t do this please, it just shows you don’t really know your stuff. No client likes being read to unless your pitching to a 6-year-old at nap time.) Or a picture of a cow in a field ( likewise don’t do this

either…its very Gavin Cheeseman and is a little lazy too) – it is a very

funny episode though HOW DID THAT GET THERE?

Understanding the Psychology of Your Audience

I just read that all back and it could be fairly interpreted that my pitch style is rather theatrical, over the top and all a bit much. There have been pitches like that but that’s because the pitch demanded it. There are a number of factors why, one of the most important being the psychology of the situation and the clients that you’re pitching to.

You need to know as much as possible about the people you’re pitching to and the situation they are in, the way their business is operating and all the supporting players as part of your research.

You may find that even with the best preparation that you have to improvise on the day as someone new joins the client team or they’ve just won or lost a new order or indeed one of the many things that can make waves in your perfect pitch.

That’s why if you have Belief and Passion, you Practice and understand the Psychology of the situation you will be best placed to Perform Perfectly!

Become a Pitch Performer

If you’d like to find out more about how to become a Pitch Performer then why not schedule a free intro meeting with me and we can discuss this, and indeed, anything else that’s on your plate, which may actually contain cake if we meet up in person. No obligation, no sales stuff and no Diva behaviour I promise!